Huskers Fall to Kent State

Despite a career-high 27 points from Dylan Talley, the Nebraska basketball team saw its four-game win streak snapped with a 74-60 loss to Kent State in the final game of the Joe Cipriano Nebraska Classic Saturday evening.

Talley led all scorers with 27 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, six rebound and three assists, as he bettered his previous Husker high of 22 points against UNO last Sunday. It also topped his previous collegiate career high, as he had a 25-point effort as a freshman at Binghamton.

The Huskers (4-1) were done in by a hot-shooting Kent State (4-2) squad which shot 60 percent in the second half and 57.1 on the night, including 5-of-8 from 3-point range. The Golden Flashes (4-2) outscored the Huskers, 42-27, in the second half and became the first Husker opponent this season to shoot over 50 percent.

"Well I credit Kent State," Nebraska Coach Tim Miles said. "I thought they did a great job with their offensive execution. I can question our effort all I want, but at the end of the day they made some great plays. I thought they executed really well."

After Nebraska took a one-point lead in the locker room, Chris Evans keyed a 9-2 run for the Golden Flashes, scoring five straight points, including a three-point play, to help the visitors build a 42-35 lead. Evans led three KSU players with 19 points, hitting 8-of-9 shots from the field.

Kent State led 48-41 before Nebraska ran off six straight points to pull within 48-47 after a Brandon Ubel put back with 11:33 remaining. NU was within 50-49 after a Talley jumper with 10:48 left, but the Golden Flashes took control with a 16-4 run over the next six minutes, capped by a Darren Goodson jumper that made it 66-53 with 4:33 remaining.

While Evans led the Golden Flashes offense, Goodson provided a big boost for Kent State off the bench with 16 points as he connected on 8-of-10 shots from the floor in just 17 minutes.

Ubel joined Talley in double figures with 17 points and a career-high 13 rebounds for his second double-double of the year. The senior hit 6-of-8 shots from the floor in 37 minutes.

In the first half, Talley played some of the best basketball of his career, totaling 17 points as Nebraska closed the first half with a flourish.

After trailing by as many as five points, the Huskers closed the first half with a 8-2 spurt and took a 33-32 lead into the break, as he connected on consecutive baskets by Talley on Nebraska's final two possessions of the half.

Nebraska will hit the road for the first time this season, as they travel to Wake Forest Tuesday night for the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. Tipoff is set for 8:15 p.m. (central) and the game will be televised on ESPNU and carried across Nebraska on the Husker Sports Network.